Process for treating material by mixtures which thicken under cooking



Jan. 5, 1932. c CRQWELL 1,839,202

ICH THICKEN UNDER COOKING OR TREATING MATERIAL BY MIXTURES WH Filed Jul 14, 192'? PROCESS F 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

i KM W M ATTORNEY Jan. 5, 1932. c ow L 1,839,202

PROCESS FOR TREATING MATERIAL BY MIXTURES WHICH THICKEN UNDER COOKING Filed July 14, .1927 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 YINVENTOR.

BY M 11. -M

A TTORNEY v Patented Jan. 5, 1932 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CHARLES H. GROWELL, OF FAIRVILLE, PENNSYLVANIA Application-filed m 14, 1927. Serial No. 205,628.

ened by heating and for applying the cold mixture to the cloth or other material.

According to the invention, a thickened hot mixture of treating material, such as flour and 1 water, which has been thickened by cooking is cooled rapidly, preferably by spreading the treating material into a thin film on an artificiallyfcooled belt or roll. The cold treating material is then applied to the cloth or other material to be treated by suitable treating apparatus including artificially cooled rolls. W

According to the invention, the cooling apparatus may comprise a hopper whose hottom is formed by a number of hollow cylinders, through which water may be clrculated to cool them. The hot thickened mix ture is poured into the hopper and is carried around in thin films on the rolls, and is thereby cooled, the cooled film being suitably removed from the rolls and caught in a suitable container. The apparatus for applying the cold treating mixture may comprise a suitof cloth, suitable spreading rolls which operate to smooth out the vgrinkles in the cloth, suitable applying rolls that apply the cold mixture, followed by artificially cooled treating rolls. A

Various other features and advantages of the invention will be-apparent from the following particular description and from an inspection of the accompanying drawings.

Although the novel features which are believed ,to be characteristic of this invention will be particularly pointed out'in the claims appended hereto, the invention itself, as to its objects and advantages, the mode of its may be better understood by referring to the following description taken in connection I with the accompanying drawings forming a part thereof, in which Fig. 1 is an elevation partly in section of These rolls form the bottom of a hopper 5,

ablerough surface roll for guiding the web 1 tending through the hollow hubs and having operation and the manner of its organization a cooling machine, made according to the invention;

Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2of Fig. 1

Fig. 3 is a more or less diagrammatic sec tion of the processing machine for applying the cold mixture;

Fig. lis a detail showing an outside view of the smoothing roll; and

Fig. 5 is a detail showing the sanded roll.

In the following description and in the claims parts will be identified by specific names for convenience, but they are intended to be as generic in their application to lar parts as the art will permit.

Like reference characters denote like parts 66 in the several figures of the drawings.

Referring now to the drawings, and more particularly to Figs. 1 and 2, the cooling machine-comprises a suitable frame 1 in which is journalled a pair of small hollow rolls 2 and a pair of large hollow rolls 3. The small rolls 2 abut each other, as shown in Fig. 1 and thereis a small space 4 between. each of the small rolls and its adjoining large roll.

the sides of the hopper being formed by the walls 6.

Referring more particularly to Fig. 2, it will be seen that each large hollow roll 3 is made up of a hollow cylinder 7 having hollow hubs 8 journalled in suitable hearings in the frame. A stationary inlet pipe 9 is provided at one end and a stationary outlet pipe 10 is provided at the other, these pipes exsuitable stuffing boxes 11 for preventing leakage. A suitable pulley 12 adapted to carry a drive belt may be mounted on a hub for rotating the roll. The smaller rolls 2 in Fig. 1 are constructed in a similar manner to the larger rolls.

Referring back to Fig. 1, suitable scraping knives 15 are mounted upon theframe 1, the knives scraping against the larger rolls 3 to scrape the film of cold "mixture from the rolls. $uitable guide plates 16 are'provided on the frame of the machine to guide the mixture which has been removed, into a suitable car 17 which is adapted to be rolled under the machine for fillmg with the cooled mixture. When the car is filled with the cold treating mixture, it will be understood that it is removed and replaced by an empty car.

Referring now to Figs. 3, 4: and 5, the processing machine comprises a suitable frame 18 in which the several rolls are suitably journall ed. The sandedguide roll 19 may comprise any ordinary roll having its surface 20 sanded or roughened in any other desired manner. The spreading rolls 21 of which there are shown three in number, may each have its surface provided with oppositely disposed right and left hand threads 22 as shown best in Fig. 4, these threads operating to spread and smooth out the cloth as the rolls are rotated. The applying rolls are indicated by 25 and 26 and form the bottom of a hopper 28, the side walls of 'which are indicated by 27. The cold filling mixture is dumped into this hopper, and, as the web 29 of cloth passes between the applying rolls, the filling mixture is applied thereto. The applying roll 25 may be made of rubber, and the applying roll 26 may be a water cooled roll of the construction shown in Fig. 2.

Rolls 30 and 31 are water cooled rolls, and may be of the construction shown in Fig. 2. The intermediate roll 32 may be of rubber. The upper roll 33 is a bundle roll and is mounted in a suitable guide way 3 1 sothat it maintains continuous contact with the last water cooled roll. The cloth is wound up on the bundle roll, preferably while wet.

To practice the invention, a treatingmixture which thickens under heating, such as a mixture of flour, starch or the like and water is first thoroughly mixed in a mixing tank (not shown) using any desirable agitation device. The treating material is then cooked in any desired manner, such as by applying live steam to the mixture by means of a suitable steam nozzle.

After the mixture has cooked the desired amount, the hot mixture which has thickened under cooking is poured into the hopper 5 of the cooling machine. The rolls rotating in the direction ofthe arrows operate to spread the hot mixture into a thin film,

the larger rolls 3 carrying it around as shown, quickly and thorough cooling the film of mixture. The knives 15 operate to scrape'the cooled film of mixture from the rolls, the cooled mixture dropping into the car beneath the machine. The thin films being rapidly cooled. do not heat the surrounding air, and therefore do not cause the air to evaporatethe moisture in themixture. On thecontrary, the surrounding air is chilled by the cold rolls and the cold films, causing moisture to condense on the thin films, keeping the films at the proper consistency.

. .It will be understood that other cooling devices may be' used according to the invention, such as an endless metal belt cooled from the inside, on which the hot mixture can be deposited. Another cooling device which may be used may comprise an apron travelin through a chamber into which is blown col air. Another method within the teaching of the invention may be to drop or spray the hot mixture into a chilled tower and then catch it in a receptacle at the bottom.

Referring now to Fig. 3, the web 29 of cloth or othenmaterial to be treated may be led from a suitable bundle roll or bale (not shown) on to the guide roll 19 and then on to the spreading rolls 21, as shown, thence on to the applying rolls 25 and 26 and thence on to the water cooled rolls 3O and31 and the rubber roll 32, whence it may be delivered on to the bundle roll 33. The spreading rolls 21 may be rotated in a direction shown by the arrows, this direction being against that of the web travel, the web travel being indicated by the arrow. The remaining rolls rotatein the same direction as the Web travel. It will 'be noted that each of the treating rolls 25, 26,

31, 32 and 33 has surface contact with its adjoining rolls, so that each part of the web is continuously rigidly supported by rolls of fixed length to prevent shrinkage. The rubber rolls being comparatively soft, operate to thoroughly squeeze the treating material into the interstices of the web, and the water cooled rolls operate to cool and chill the treating material.

The web is wound up in the bundle roll damp, and when the bundle roll is filled, it may be removed and taken to a suitable drying drum, where unwinding, drying and rewinding may take place.

Thus a method of treating a web 'of material by means of a mixture of a substance thickened under cooking is provided in which the hot thickened treating mixture is cooled rapidly and the web is treated by the cold mixture and cold rolls. This rapid cooling rev sults in practically no evaporation and hence no scum of mixture from'which the water has been evaporated is formed. This results not only in an absolutely homogeneous mixture throughout, but also in one whose temperature has become contant, the mixture therefore being of uniform quality. It will be understood that the quality of these treating mixtures changes with temperature. The action of the constant temperature rolls on a constant temperature treating mixture is always the same and hence there results a uniform and superior treated web. I

The treatment-according to the invention is much superior to the treatment by hot treating mixtures heretofore used. With hot treating mixtures, it is impossible to .prevent a scum from forming resulting from the increased evaporation at the surface of the mixture, this thickened scum causing a non-homogeneous mixture. Furthermore, with hot;

mixtures the temperature is bound to drop lot ' st'itutions and changes during the treatment of the web. Not only isthe web treated with different qualities of mixture due to change in temperature, but the action of the rolls on the parts of the mixture at different temperature is different, resulting in a non-uniformly treated web. All such difficulties and disadvantages are overcome by the invention.

Although certain novel features of the invention have been shown and described and are pointed out in the annexed claims, it will be understood that various omissions, subin the several steps of the process and in its operation and in the form and details'of the apparatus illustrated may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit of the invention.

What is claimed is:

1. The method of treating a web comprising quickly chilling a hot treating mixture which has thickened under cooking to prevent evaporation of the moisture, and applying the cold mixture to said web.

2. The method of treating a web of open mesh with a mixture that thickens under cooking comprising forming a mixture of water and thickening substance, cooking the V mixture until of the desired thick consistency, forming the hot mixture into a-film, cooling the film, applying the cooled substance to said web, passing said web over artificially cooled rolls, winding said web into. a bundle roll while damp, said web being continuously rigidly supported from the point where said mixtureis" applied to-said bundle roll.

3. The method of making treated cloth which comprises rapidly cooling the treating material to minimize evaporation of constituents thereof, treating the cloth with the cooled treating material, cooling the treated cloth to minimize evaporation of the treating material on the cloth and treated cloth so cooled.

4. The method of treating a web of cloth comprising chilling a hot treating mixture which has. thickened under cooking, said treating mixture having a liquid constituent, applying the cold mixture to said web and subjecting said web and mixture to the action of a cold treating device to minimize evaporation of said liquid constituent.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set m hand.

y CHARLES H. CROWELL.

processing the 

